Listed-corn cultivator.



Patented Sept. ll, I900.

2 Sh.eets-Sheet l..

INuTON, a. c.

8. SMITH.

LISTE'D CORN GULTIVATOR.

(Application filed Jan. 20, 1900.;

THE NORRZS warns co, mo'muwu. wAsn (J10 Model.)

v u 2 1H, aw a :0 WV Q/ 3 J E m J 6 0 (kw way 3 J a a 000 00 o 4 O 7 +2o 5% 5 a O J 5 No. 657,840. Patented Sept. ll, I900.

8. SMITH. LISTED CORN CULTIVATDB.

(A'Dplication filed Jan. 20, 1900.)

2' Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

Unites STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SETH SMITH, OF GASTANA, IOWA.

LlSTED-CORN CULTIVATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 657,840. datedSeptember 11, 1900.

Application filed January 20, 1900- Serial No- 2,162. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SETH SMITH, a citizen of the United States, and aresident of Oastana, Monona county, State of Iowa, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Listed-Corn Cultivators; and my preferredmanner of carrying out the invention is set forth in the following full,clear, and exact description, terminating with claims particularlyspecifying the novelty.

This invention relates to cultivators, more especially to that classwhich are adapted for use in connection with listed corn whose rows areplanted in a valley or furrow having each side wall rising gradually tothe ridge between one row and the next. Incidentally the ma chine mayalso be used as a harrow or a clodcrusher, or both, and it has mechanismfor replanting missing hills.

The invention consists in the general construction and arrangement ofparts hereinafter described, and illustrated in the drawings intwotypes, one a cheaper and simpler grade and the other a more expensiveand 'efi'ective form.

In the said drawings,Figure 1 is a plan yiew of the simpler type,showing the roller in po sition on the right runner and omitted from theleft and illustrating the various blades in different positions. Fig. 2is a cross-section on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1, taken through the rollerin one runner and just in rear of the support for the other. Fig. 3 is adetail of one of the simpler forms of cultivatonblades and its holder.Fig. 4 is a plan View of the more expensive type of this machine,showing the roller in the right runner and also in the left and alsoshowing the harrows attached to the left runner and omitted from theright. Fig. 5 is a cross-section on the line 5 5 of Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is aleft side elevation of the type shown in Fig. 4, partly in section, toillustrate the support for the outer barrow. Fig. 7 is a perspectivedetail of my preferred form of cultivatr-blade and its holder removed.Fig. 8 is a perspective detail of one of the harrows removed. Y

The framework of my improved cultivator consists of two parallel runners1 1, connected by arches 2 2, whose tops carry the seat-beam 3, whereonis the drivers seat 4, handles being sometimes provided, if desired, aswell.

The draft mechanism by which the team is attached to this device is notherein illustrated, as it may be ofany well-known type, and forms nopart of the present invention. The runners, which are spaced so astotravel upon the ridges, consist of flat boards,to whose inner edgeswings 10 are hinged, as at 11, and the angle of these wings may beadjusted by any suitable means. The inner edges of the wings and therear inner corners of the runners stand at an angle to the outer edgesof the runners, as shown in Fig. 4. In Fig. 2 a bar 12 projects inwardover and beyond the runner and is slotted for the reception of the upperend of a link 13, provided with a series of holes 14, adjustablyengagedby a pin 15 through the bar, while the lower end of the link isloosely connected, as at 16, with the wing. In Fig. 5 a screw 130 isthreaded through asimilar bar 1 2, has a handle 150 atits upper end, andhasa ball 160at its lower end loosely engaging a slot in socket-piece onthe wing. The latter can be adjusted vertically by either constructionor by any similar arrangement which will answer, and the entire machineis a clod-crusher, especially when used in connection with the devicesnext to be described.

are rollers mounted in openings through the runners near their forwardends and usually projecting slightly below their lower faces. The shafts21 of these rollers are adjustable vertically in any suitable manner,(not well shown in the simpler type of my device,although to be thereunderstood.) In the more expensive type the runner may consist of twoside bars 100, sheathed on their lower faces with metal 1,000, (and thewings may also be similarly sheathed, if desired,) and the roller 20 islocated in an opening in the sheathing of the runner, with its shaftpassing through the side bars. A screw 22 may pass downward into each ofthese bars for adjusting vertically a block 23, located in an uprightslot 24 in each side bar, and the shaft is jonrnaled in this block. I donot limit myself to this means of adjusting the roller vertically, butgive it merely as an illustration. When the rolleris depressed, it isclear that the front end of the runner will be raised. The front ends ofthe runners are turned up in any event, so as to pass over rough groundrollers, if desired, and either, or both, may be and obstructions, and Iprovide barrows re- 7 movably attached'thereto, so as .to be used whendesired in connection with the wing as well as with the runner. One ofthese harrows is shown in detail in Fig. 8. It consists of a that body30, with upturned cars 31 at its front corners, connected by a cross-rod32, adapted to extend over the front end of the wing or runner, and therear end of the flat 1 plate 30 is slitted into or may be provided withteeth which are twisted so as to stand on edge, as indicated. Thisfigure shows a & block 34 secured upon one edge of the body 30 and aspring 35 secured upon its other edge, but they are equivalents of eachother, and there are to be two of whichever are'em- 1 plo'yed. Theseconstitute stops to press the rear end of the body and all of the teethdo-wn- 1 ward, while the front end of the device is sustained by beinghooked over the runner. The barrows may be used in connection with theare removed, the stops come away with them, which leaves the front endof the runners free i from obstructions.

The inner edges of the wings and runners are provided with obliquenotches, as seen at 40 in Fig. l, and in the forward most of suchnotches are hoes 41, pivoted at 42 near their 1 front ends, with theirbodies standing o bliqne i to the line of travel and converging toward leach other and their upper edges bent over l into footpieces 43. Thedriver, sitting on the seat 4, can press his feet upon either of these Fl i removed when preferred. When the barrows i t pieces 43 to throw thelower "edge of its hoe into the earth, and thus in a measure guide themachine, or when a missing hill is reached he can drop a few kernels ofcorn in front of i one or both of these hoes, and then by de? pressingthem cover the kernels and plant a i new hill.

Figs. 3 and 7 illustrate forms of cultivatorl blades and their holderswhich are used in l connection with this machine. In Fig. 1 obl liqu'eplates 50 are secured within the notches f 40, and the blades have theirstems pivoted at 51 near the front corners of these plates and areprovided with attaching means 1 consisting of set-screws 52, with theirshanks taking through curved slots 53 near the rear ends of theseplates, whereby the set-screws may be loosened and the bodies of theblades raised or lowered. In Fig. 3'the same blade, ?I with its pivotand'set-screw, is used; but the 3 slot is in a holder 54, which is of Lshape, and 3 its lower horizontal member 55 is pivoted at i 56 upon therunner and has a curved slot 57 f receiving the shank of anotherset-screw 58, i which takes into the runner. By this ar-j rangement theholder has an adjustment about a vertical pivot, which adj u'stm-entnec- 1 essarily affects the. angle that the :c-ul'tivator- 1 blade shallassume toward theline of travel, while the blade'also has the samevertical ad- Z justment as above described. In the very;

their work.

simplest form the blade has one adj ustment only, and the plate orholder 50 stands oblique. In Fig. 7 is shown my preferred form of bladeand its holder. The latter is again of L shape, permitting the samehorizontal and vertical adjustment; but instead of the set-screw 5 2 Ihere employ an attachment-consisting of a thumb-n u't 61, engaging theshank of a bolt 62, passing through the slot 53 and curved around thestem 63 of the blade 60. This stem is cylindrical and is journaled in abearing 64, whose forward end is pivoted at 51 to the upright member-ofthe holder. The front end of the stem has a lug 65, adapted to engageany one of several notches 66 formed in the front end of the bearing 64.This construction of attachment permits the same adjustments asdescribed for those above, and in addition it permits the operator byloosening the thumb nut to push the stem forward, disengage this lugfrom one of the notches, rotate it on its axis, and set it into anothernotch, and then retighten the thum bnut to hold the parts in position.With the exception of the very simplest form of holder all these abovedescribed are mounted upon 1 the rear ends of the runners and the Wings,1 if of wood, or upon the rear extremities of the sheathing 1,000, ifthat be employed.

All parts are of the desired sizes, shapes, proportions, and materials,though the runners and wings of the simpler type are preferably of wood,while in the more expensive type they are of wooden beams sheath ed withmetal. Theside beams, handles, and wingsuppor-ti-ng bars may also be ofWood, and all other parts are preferably of metal. The ban dies may heof anyproper shape and size and might be omitted, if desired. Theoperator obviously sits upon the seat, and the operation of guiding themachine and planting missing hills is above described. To use the deviceas a harrow, four of the harrows shown in Fig. 8 are attached in'themanner set forth, with or without the rollers, as prefer-red, and thecultivators may be set so as not to touch the earth or to assist thebarrow-teeth with To use the device as a clodcrusher, the Wings are setflat or in linewi'th the runners, and here again the harrows, rollers,and cultivator-blades may or may not be used,as preferred. The attachingof the team is a matter necessitating no particular description.

It is Well known that in the cultivation of listed corn and especiallywhere the hills are young and small the weeds grow'mostly onconsiderable size they can be cultivated without such extreme delicacybeing necessary. The detachability of the harrows and the detachabilityand adjustability of the rollers serve this purpose and adapt themachine to plants of all ages and to ridges and valleys of all shapes;but perhaps the most important feature of my invention is the generalarrangement and the wide range of adjustment possessed by thecultivator-blades, especially when constructed in accordance with mypreferred form. Their bodies are curved slightly by preference somethinglike moldboards, and when they are given a vertical and a horizontaladjustment and perhaps an axial adjustment in addition it will be seenthat their operative edges can be caused to stand at any desired angleto the line of movement and to the surface of the earth. I do notelaborate upon the process of cultivating listed corn, as that is wellknown, but it will be obvious that a machine constructed in the abovemanner will perform its functions so as to make the work pleasureinstead of toil.

What is claimed as new is- 1. In a listed-corn cultivator, two parallelrunners connected by arches, and aseat-beam on the latter combined withwings hinged to the inner edges of the runners, bars projecting inwardfrom the latter over the wings, ad-

justing devices for the wings at the inner ends of the bars, and rollersremovably and adjustably journaled in the runners near their forwardends, as and for the purpose set forth.

2. Ina device of the character set forth, the combination with a pair ofparallel runners connected by a framework, wings hinged to their inneredges, and means for adjusting the angles of the wings; ofvertically-adjustable rollers mounted in openings near the front ends ofthe runners, and hat-rows removably attached to the forward ends of therunners and wings, substantially as and for the purpose described.

In a device of the character set forth, the combination with parallelrunners having adjustable wings with oblique notches in their inneredges, and a framework supporting a drivers seat; of hoes pivoted neartheir front ends in said notches and having their upper edges turnedover into foot-pieces, as and for the purposes set forth.

e. in a device of the character described, the combination with a runnerhaving an upturned front end; of a barrow removably mounted thereon andcomprising a fiat body with ears at its front corners connected by across-rod, said body having teeth at its rear end which are twisted soas to stand on edge, and stops secured on the body near its rear end tohold it in a posit-ion oblique to the runner, substantially asdescribed.

5. In a cultivator, the combination with a runner, and a plate carriedthereby and having a curved slot; of a cultivatonblade whose stem ispivotally connected with the plate, and an attachn'ient whose shankengages the stem and slot, as and for the purpose set forth.

6. In a cultivator, the combination with a runner,and a holderconsisting of an L-shaped plate having a curved slot in each of itsmembers; of a pivot between the lower member and the runner, a setscrewengaging the latter and the slot in this member, a blade pivotallyconnected with the upper member, and an attachment whose shank engagesthe stem of the blade and the slot in this member, substantially asdescribed.

7. In a cultivator, the combination with a support, a cultivator-bladeholder mounted thereon, and means for adjusting it horizontally; of theblade proper having a cylindrical stem, a bearing in which the stem isjournaled, a bolt with one end of its shank curved around the stem andits other end passing through the holder, and a thumb-nut on the same,all as and for the purpose set forth.

8. In a cultivator, the combination with a support, and acultivator-blade holder mounted thereon and having a curved slot in itsupright member; of the blade proper having a cylindrical stem, a bearingin which the stem is journaled, said bearing being pivoted to saidupright member of the holder, a bolt with one end of its shank curvedaround the stem and its other end passing through said slot in theholder, and a thumb-nut on the same, all substantially as described.

9. In a cultivator, the combination with a support having an uprightmember provided with a curved slot; of a tubular bearing pivoted.at oneend to said member, a cultivatorblade having a stem journaled in saidhearing, a bolt passing through the slot and engaging the stem adjacentthe movable end of the bearing, and means for tightening the bolt on thestem and the bearing against the holder, as and for the purpose setforth.

10. In a cultivator, the combination with a support, a holder thereon, atubular bearing having notches in its front end, and adj ustableconnections between the bearing and holder; of the cultivator-bladehaving a stem journaled in said bearing, and a lug on the stem adaptedto engage said notches, as and for the purpose set forth.

11. In a cultivator, the combination with a support, a holder thereon, atubular bearing having notches in its front end, said front end beingpivoted to the holder and the latter provided with a slot struck on acurve around the pivot; of a cultivator-blade having a stem journaled inthe bearing'and provided with a lug adapted to engage the notchesthereof, and a bolt having its shank passing through said slot with oneend engaging said stem and the other end having a nut, all as and forthe purpose set forth.

12. In a cultivator, the combination with a support, an L-shaped holderhaving curved slots in each member, the lowermost being pivoted to thesupport, and a set-screw in the latter engaging the slot in this member;of a tubular bearing pivoted near its front end to the upright memberand having notches in said front end, a cultivator-blade Whose stem isjournaled in the bearing and has a lug engaging said notches, and a bolthaving its shank passing through the slot in this [116111- 1C her withone end engaging said stem and the other end receiving a nut, all as andfor the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed mysignature this 15thday of Jan nary, A. D. 1900.

SETH SMITH.

Witnesses:

S. S. SNYDER, O. E. ERSKINE.

